Captain Marvel
by Sarakaroline8
Summary: She aimed to forget but now has a chance to redeem herself and choose to become what she really is. She is Captain Marvel. Put in Guardians of the Galaxy category because they may or may not make an appearance in this comic. Made to fit in the MCU Universe so some story lines are meant to veer away from the comics. Test run. If liked enough, more chapters will follow :)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Carol waited in an elevator with her hands behind her back with her fingers clasped together. With her blonde hair down in loose curls, wearing her best black dress and going the extra mile with makeup, she subtly glanced over to her right at a man who was dressed particularly dapper for his own special night.

He caught her stare as she met his eyes with a smile and feigned a shy look away. She was where she wanted to be and the second that her personal operation was done, she would leave Las Vegas to go back under the grid. Such was her pattern in life. She would keep to herself for the most part until someone needed her help. She was willing to do whatever to serve but wanted to keep her privacy and her own prerogative.

It made her job difficult to stay out of the spotlight since the Sokovia Accords made every person like her either work for the government or hide. It was all the super humans could do. If Carol used her powers for anything that raised scrutiny, she would be arrested. It didn't matter if whoever she helped needed it desperately. If it wasn't government-sanctioned, it was considered work of a vigilante.

Yet, Carol continued with her work but covered her tracks when necessary. She could have easily stayed low but she had nothing to live for other than bringing justice to those who needed it. She accepted her life. It hadn't always been her lot in life but it was her cross to bear.

The elevator opened to the main floor as she quickly walked into the middle of the Bellagio but could sense the man from the elevator walking behind her. She could hear his steps in his freshly shined shoes as he kept his distance. She knew he was going to try a conversation and stopped to let him. She was only using him as a pawn.

Then she could sense the guy walking away as another persona stood behind her. Miffed that she was close to wrapping up her mission only for it to be ruined in the blink of an eye, she turned around and gasped at who it was.

"Carol Danvers. It's a pleasure to meet you." Tony Stark said while holding two champagne bottles. "I assume you know who I am and that _you_ know that _I_ know who _you_ are." He stuck his arm elbow out for her to take as to be her escort. "Care to join me outside?"

Carol looked around the lobby as she noticed several men close in on them. Until she knew their true intentions, she felt it wrong to attack them just yet. She would wait until Stark made his intentions with her clear.

…

"You a little leery of me, Ms. Danvers?" Tony said as they walked outside the hotel and towards the iconic fountains that overlooked the Vegas strip.

"It's not that often that one of the richest men on the entire planet strikes up a conversation." Carol said and sipped her champagne. "However, I can only assume the worst."

"We just noticed some strange activity in this area, I saw you in the lobby then put two-and-two together." Tony said once they made it to next to the fountains as water sprouted up with synchronized music playing in the background.

Carol gave him a confused look and shrugged. "Strange activity?" She asked. "News to me."

"Robbery that had to do with steel doors being ripped from their sockets by petite fingers that look similar to the ones you spot on your lovely hands…" He started as he leaned both elbows on the balcony.

Carol held her hands up with her palms facing towards her. "You would think a nasty job like that would chip a nail." She quipped with a smirk.

He went on without as much as a blink. "Do you know how many security cameras a casino has? They have even more by their safe." He stated and stood up tall. "About fifty cameras saw a quick dark blur whiz by. Witnesses said it looked similar to someone flying. But they couldn't believe it with their eyes and considered that they drank too much."

"Gambling and alcohol doesn't mix, believe it or not. Hallucinations could be expected. Your government goonies should check to see if they were under the influence of any other powerful, and illegal, substance." Carol said as she tipped her champagne bottle and drank it all as quickly as she could. "So far I'm not seeing a plausible correlation between myself and the robbery. Kind of offended that you would jump to conclusions like that."

"So what were you doing instead last night?" He asked and looked her in the eye.

"Sky is the limit in Sin City. But if you must know, I went to go see Celine Dion." Carol thought quickly of an alibi. She should have known that there were more hidden cameras than she thought or cared to look for. It was more cockiness than anything as she knew there was little anyone could do if she was a suspect for a heist. However, she didn't know she could draw in the wrong kind of attention so quickly. She knew either S.H.I.E.L.D or the U.S. government would be around within the week to investigate but assumed she would be far gone before they even knew she was there.

"Jokes on you. Celine Dion was at a party I hosted last night in California." Tony said with a smile.

Stumped on what to say next, Carol flared her nostrils and accepted the defeat. "So what happens now? Am I going to get locked away for life?" She asked almost taunting him. She would like to see him try.

"Stealing half a million dollars isn't what you call using your abilities worth something substantial in this life. You of all people should know there are more rewarding things." Stark hinted at her past.

"Says the multi-billionaire." Carol retorted under her breath. "Okay, you're alluding to something you think you know about me. I want to hear it."

"Where do I begin on the biography of Carol Danvers?" Tony boasted with partial joking riddled in his tone at her expense. "Honestly, when I read your file, I was impressed to see how much there was for someone your age. The second you graduate high school, you join the military and become a pilot in the United States Air Force. Soon after, S.H.I.E.L.D. picked you up as one of their agents where they offered you a full ride scholarship to your desired college as part of a perfect cover. Remember what major you chose at M.I.T.?"

Carol's nostrils flared that it seemed whatever file they had on her wasn't sparing any details. "Biological science."

"And you passed your NASA space physical with flying colors. Young little Carrie became an astronaut." Tony recounted as he noticed a change in Carol's demeanor. She didn't try to say anything insulting or chide him either way. She appeared sullen and even heartbroken. "What you have done in the service of your country and mankind isn't supposed to be a put down. Genuinely, I'm in awe of all the accomplishments you have done in the past."

"Not enough to grant a pardon for what I did last night?" Carol inquired. "That money didn't belong to the casino in the first place. The owner stole it from good people."

Tony looked at her for a moment to gage whether or not she was going to take off as fast as she could but then spoke up. "Ms. Danvers. I'm not here to arrest you. The government would like to think you are a law abiding citizen but after a stunt like this, they start reading your file and seeing that you can release energy similar to a nuclear weapon… that will raise some red flags. I'm here to offer a proposition in exchange for your life off the grid the way you want it to be. With you popping up very little, I can only guess that's what you really want. To be left alone."

Carol leaned on the balcony and stared at the fountain show.

"Whatever you needed half a million dollars for, I will triple it and then some." Tony said and leaned on the balcony next to her. "We need you to come out of retirement for a special mission."

"Not interested." Carol said immediately.

"So you would rather go to prison than hear me out?" Stark questioned quickly.

Carol's mission for the money was for someone that needed it. Stark's offer to triple that number sparked her interest as she knew they wouldn't get anything if she didn't at least hear what he had to say. She took a deep breath and finally caved. "I almost died out there in space. And the government is asking me to do more? Haven't I done enough?" She asked.

"Your knowledge and your abilities makes you valuable. Sometimes it can seem like too much but if anyone can handle it, its people like us. We were given our strengths to help people. And now people need you." Tony encouraged.

Carol growled under her breath at his speech as it came off a little preachy to her but swallowed her pride. "And I am understanding that if I don't do this, you'll take me to jail?" Carol sneered.

Tony Stark lifted his right sleeve jacket slightly to reveal a watch as her put a hand over it and tugged towards his fingertips. She saw as part of his Iron Man gear fit over his right hand as he looked up to her with a smile. "I didn't come unprepared. I even have the Hulkbuster nearby. But if this does get ugly, let's try and keep it away from the intoxicated citizens, shall we?" He asked.

…

They were in Tony Stark's hotel room that overlooked all of the strip as Carol sat on the couch and stared down at the action that was happening in below.

"Any particular reason that Ross sent you?" Carol asked.

"Perhaps he thought I was capable for once. For a number of reasons." Tony said as he stood next to the large window of his hotel.

"One reason being that you're Iron Man?" Carol chided.

"The other being that the mission hits close to home." He said as he walked towards her. "I'm sure you heard of Dr. Bruce Banner."

Carol nodded as she eyed him settling down on the other side of the couch. "Hasn't everyone at this point?" She asked.

"He's been missing in action with no trace since Sokovia." Stark said low as she knew top secret information was going to be shared for her ears only. It was always the tone everyone took when they worked in the government. Some things weren't meant to be shared with the public. "Most people think the last time we sent people into space was in 2011. You know that's not the case. As your own space mission took place in 2013."

"This conversation is informative to no one." Carol said snidely. "To stop beating around the bush, yes, I know about NASA's missions to space and their involvement with the Nova Corporation. Which opens to the fact that I know of multiple civilizations in the universe besides our own." She took a deep breath as she decided to voice her thoughts. "My mission is to go to space again. Am I right?"

"Couldn't be more correct." Tony said as he grabbed his phone and placed it on the coffee table. He pressed a button as the image on his screen projected above his phone for the both of them to see. It was a place. Carol had never seen it before. Her locations were limited to Hala and a brief time in Xandar.

"When Dr. Banner left, he was in a ship with a homing beacon device turned off. Whether it be intentionally or accidentally, we don't know. He just disappeared into thin air. But a month ago, that switch was turned back on for a small number of seconds. With Nova Corporation's technology they had loaned for S.H.I.E.L.D's ships and for us lowly 'Terran's' to learn from, that homing beacon on the ship was located somewhere further than we thought." Tony said as he zoomed the image out to show what looked to be a mining colony. "This is Knowhere."

"If I am able to put the pieces together, I can assume you want me to bring him back." Carol noted. "What if he doesn't _want_ to come back?"

"It's better knowing _that_ at least instead of nothing at all which is what we're working with now. We don't know anything. Nova Corps is in the process of cleaning their own disaster that happened a few years ago. They couldn't assist. We need someone who has experience with the alien culture and someone strong enough to handle the Hulk should he make an appearance on your little government paid vacation." Tony said as the phone played footage of the Hulk in New York on queue upon hearing Tony bring it up.

"Experience with the alien culture…" Carol said with a small laugh. "I was in prison on Hala for six months. That isn't necessarily a place where you learn the culture for the fun of it."

"But at least it boosts your street cred." Tony remarked with a sarcastic smile. Carol wondered if he _had_ any other smile. He got serious for a moment. "That information wasn't said on your file."

Carol scoffed as she shook her head. She couldn't believe how much stock Tony was putting on her abilities. "And you can't go because?" She asked. Carol understood he had zero astronaut experience but he was more than capable of fighting the Hulk himself if he had to.

"NASA along with Nova Corp are busy detecting some strange activity of their own." Stark pressed his phone again as dots appeared around a map of what appeared to mark around both the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies. They were mostly in Andromeda with smaller numbers freckling their Milky Way galaxy. "Those red dots aren't something that looked promising. What's disconcerting is that those same red dots weren't in Andromeda until a month ago. The same time that Dr. Banner's homing beacon went off in Knowhere. It could be a coincidence. But something tells me trouble is brewing. I would love to be in both places at once but all clones I have made of myself are still in the shop." He said sardonically as Carol couldn't tell whether or not there was some partial truth to his mad scientist vibe he always seemed to have.

"I feel sick." Carol stated as she tried to wrap her head around all the information bestowed to her. She wouldn't have dreamed about going to space again. All of those dreams turned into nightmares. For as long as she could remember, going to space was all she wanted to do with her life. But when she finally made it, it was a memory that haunted her. She arrived back to earth six months later than they were due and she was the only one of her crew that survived the whole ordeal. She kept her mouth shut about her personal experience on Hala and being a prisoner. They only knew that she had changed and couldn't even technically be considered only human. Once the tests were done, the government pitied her and sent Carol on her way. It was in her time alone that she was able to control and harness her abilities without interruption.

Still, with more control and more power, she still felt significant worry about the journey ahead of her. She had no choice in the matter. She obviously wanted a life in solace versus rotting in a jail cell. The choice had already been made. However, she still felt her stomach twist knowing that she could be in the setting of her own personal nightmares in the near future.

"So that's it. Go to space, find his ship on Knowhere, and go from there?" Carol asked to get it straight. "I guess I can just ask around to see if anyone saw some big green guy wreaking havoc around the place."

"Well, you could always bring a wallet sized photo with you to help. I…" Tony started but Carol shushed him upon hearing loud voices in the hallway of the hotel.

Carol stayed quiet to hear what they were saying but then heard several guns cock instead. "Get down." She whispered.

Tony instead placed his phone in his pocket and then put both hands directly in the middle of the coffee table. He pushed away from himself slightly as the top of the coffee table slid to the floor quietly. There was a knock on the door as Carol saw the coffee table had two foot sole imprints outlined as Tony stepped on top of it where his shoes filled the outline. Instantly, metal started surrounding him as it quickly constructed to be his Iron Man suit. Carol heard a revving up noise from his suit the second his face was covered as they both turned towards the door. She stood up as they heard the sound of someone breaking in through the door.

"Anyone else suspect you of stealing their casino money?" Tony said through his Iron Man suit.

"Possibly." Carol said as her hands started to glow like a light bulb.

"Unless its government sanctioned, we can't do anything to fight them. Especially with innocent people around." Tony reminded her as his mask stared down at her hands.

Carol made a noise of distaste and instead turned around to face the window and shot a beam of photonic energy towards it as it shattered the window. "You being a stickler for rules can really put a damper on the night." She muttered.

"I resent that statement." Stark said as the hotel door was almost pushed down completely. But Carol started walking towards the broken window with Iron Man by her side.

"We have a meeting place?" Carol asked.

"Houston." He said with the door behind them opening and gunfire raining immediately. However, when they started firing their weapons, it was too late. Both Iron Man and Carol Danvers already leapt out the window and flew separately towards their destination.


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: Just a fanfiction and not meant to be a literal translation of copywritten characters. Only a fan.**

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: There are a few changes I have made with Captain Marvel. As any comic book reader knows, there is a plethora of detail for every superhero within the Marvel world. Throughout, her 48 years of being Captain Marvel (or Ms. Marvel, if you will), there have been large amounts of story lines. It's not unheard of that when translating these comics to the big screen, that some story lines never make the cut and origin stories are changed to be a much simpler plot.**

 **When tackling this character, I have changed some things. Some parts of her origin story, what she has been doing, and what her abilities can do. Only to make it less complicated and more about one story. The story that is going to be told in this fanfiction has NOT happened in the comic books.**

 **Events that take place within this story are after the events in Civil War. I know Captain Marvel's movie doesn't come out until 2019. But hey, it's FanFiction! I have the freedom to do what I want! Enjoy!**

Chapter 2

"Welcome back, Ms. Danvers." A voice echoed in the dark room that started lighting up as she walked in. It was her old apartment that she lived in near the NASA facility in Houston. There was no dust to be seen. Someone kept it nice and tidy for her as if expecting her to return. With the technology donated from Mr. Stark, all the local apartments for the space travelers were high technological homes where every need was met. "Would you like me to set an alarm for the morning?" The female voice, that Carol named Betsy, echoed in the room of her little smart house.

"That would be great." Carol replied as she looked in her bedroom to see the same picture frames on her desk where she left them. "Does the workout facility have a particular schedule for mission training?" She asked her smart house.

"With the exception of tomorrow, they would like you to come to the facility at five in the morning sharp. It's already 2 at night which wouldn't be sufficient enough rest. They requested you sleep in your first day home." Betsy said as her voice echoed throughout the apartment.

"That's thoughtful but unnecessary." Carol commented.

"Ms. Danvers. A fully grown individual needs at least seven and a half hours of sleep per day." Betsy argued.

"Scan me." Carol instructed.

"Ms. Danvers…" Betsy said not understanding the reason why.

"Do it. You need new charts on me anyways. I'm sure I've changed a lot." Carol said as she walked into the kitchen to see if there was anything to eat. She could have gone for some Oreo's at that moment and also hoped the Wii was still in her living room. She had three hours to kill before she had to be anywhere and thought lounging on the couch was the best.

After several minutes Betsy's voice rang out again. "According to your new charts, your body only needs one hour of sleep every forty eight hours. Your DNA is similar to that of…" Betsy said in her usual voice unfazed by the change. Carol didn't think it out of the ordinary. Artificial intelligence systems tended to act like robots for obvious reasons.

"My DNA leans more towards Kree than human." Carol finished Betsy's thoughts. It was a truth that Carol hardly uttered to anyone but Betsy wasn't really anyone. She was a personal assistant who wouldn't tell classified information to anyone else without Carol's permission.

"Would you like me to download Kree culture and diet to my database?" Betsy inquired as Carol opened the kitchen pantry to see an unopened container of Oreo's.

"That won't be necessary. I most definitely still prefer human junk food." Carol said and nearly skipped to the couch where she could relax after a long night.

"I remember, Ms. Danvers. When hearing about your sudden arrival, I took the liberty of putting a grocery list together and sent a NASA intern to the store to get your favorite things." Betsy exclaimed. Carol could almost hear a great deal of pride behind it. Betsy's only emotion was boasting about her greatness.

"Thanks, Betsy." Carol said as she sat down on the couch and put her feet up on the coffee table. "That will be all for now."

"Always of service." Betsy responded and Carol heard nothing else. She sat on the couch as she opened her pack of Oreo's and took a bite. This was the best home that Carol had ever had. Even the one growing up. She didn't get along with her family and at the point in her life, she knew too many classified things that she couldn't relay to anyone that was close to her before her military, agent, or space career. Over the years, she shut her family out. They didn't even know where she was most of the time.

She turned her head towards the front door when she heard a familiar voice ring through the walls from the apartment hallway. Carol placed the Oreo's on the coffee table to prepare for company. With her black dress still on, she walked into the bathroom to grab a hairbrush to get all of the rat's nests out as much as possible. She preferred not to fly for that minor reason.

An older man knocked on her door as she quickly brushed her hair. She made a noise of defeat as she knew her project of getting knots out would have to continue as she talked to the man who she admired more than family.

She opened the door as the older man stood with a wide smile. Dr. Richard Connors walked inside as Carol gave him a big hug with her hairbrush still in hand. "Ricky!" She exclaimed with a joyful voice.

"It's so great to see you, Carol!" He said as she motioned for him to come into her place.

"Set with the Oreo's already?" Richard said as he sat down in an arm chair opposite the couch.

They spoke for a while about what had happened while she was away and what had happened on his side of things while he was still working in NASA. All the while, they ate at Oreo's and she brushed the terrible knots out of her hair as they laughed and remembered old times. Carol knew he wasn't the kind of person that would wait until morning to see her. She was glad he came.

Until the mood started to become serious. Carol knew Richard was digging. She didn't blame him. He had a right to know what happened while she was on her first space mission.

"What happened out there?" Richard asked. "What happened to you and the crew?"

Carol remembered him asking her that when she got back from her mission. It was a mixture of both shock and heartbreak that she couldn't bare telling anyone what had happened.

"Our mission was to learn more about Nova Corporation. We wanted to put a better light on the people we share the universe with. We did it for the people of New York. To make them feel better and not so small. That they were a part of something good." Carol recounted as she stared down at her hands. "I was so enthusiastic. Coming home from a mission like that to unify people together. What I saw up there? The universe has its own problems. And our planet is the least prepared for what's above us."

"No one said trying to do good for your humanity was an easy job. Those who discover see light and dark in new corners of the cosmos. Maybe this next trip you'll find the light." Richard suggested.

"Don't remind me that I'm going back out there. Mentally, I'm ill-prepared." Carol stressed as she leaned back on the couch holding a hand to her head.

Richard knew her probably better than anyone. When she first came to NASA, he was her instructor to herself and her crew. He made an impact on Carol that was unparalleled to any other person. He knew her insecurities and above all else, he knew her abilities. To the rest of the world, she worked for NASA but never went to space. However, Richard knew of everything that she wasn't even able to tell her family. "You've got this." Richard said. "Don't forget, you were the one that came back. I don't know what happened and I'm sure it wasn't easy but you _did come back."_ He said emphasizing the last part.

Carol nodded as she wiped some tears slightly before he could see them.

"Can you at least tell me if my nephew died up there?" He asked timidly. He didn't want to merge into a full-fledged panic attack upon talking into details on what was the most traumatic experience in her life but he deserved to know and she knew that.

"Yes." Carol said quietly.

"Please tell me how." Richard encouraged with his voice shaking.

"Nova Corporation was setting a peace treaty between the Kree Empire and Xandar. Several outposts had been attacked. We had already been on Xandar for several weeks and were given a tour of an outpost when the Kree attacked. Obviously, we were tested and experimented on after that. It was while we were on the Kree home planet that the crew started dropping one by one. And then it was just me and…" She almost said his name. The Kree slime that mutated her to be something else entirely.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Danvers." Richard replied after she stared off in the distance. "You don't have to tell me anymore."

"Maybe one day I will." Carol revealed. "Perhaps if I find this light on my next mission, it'll put me in higher spirits than I have been."

"I hope so." Richard agreed. "Let's hope for a better outcome this time."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

It had only been a day of training when NASA realized that it was far too hazardous or unnecessary for Carol to continue with the trainers and specialists. It boosted her confidence that they didn't think it was crucial to prepare but it also made her feel like a ticking time bomb.

She assessed her entire situation around her while she spent the next several days in Houston and being around people. It was something that she scarcely did anymore. She didn't live amongst people anymore. She preferred her excluded cottage house out in North Dakota where she didn't worry about bothering people or hurting anyone.

When NASA decided to move the date up for her mission launch, Carol decided to tour around the facilities deep in thought as she was soon going to be off her home planet. Carol walked slowly to the building that had her ship inside and took a seat on the tallest staircase that overlooked the ship.

Carol looked at it with skepticism as it was the same model ship that her crew used for the last excursion into the unknown. Carol leaned against a concrete beam next to the staircase and closed her eyes as she thought of everything that had happened when she returned from that mission.

Her discovery of her powers was sudden and terrifying. It wasn't a gradual feeling of something different. It came without warning. She had only been back on Earth for a week as some of her close friends wanted to wish her back from a classified area.

Then a man came up behind her while they were at the bar with intent to harm. She elbowed him in the chest with no hesitation or self-control. The way everyone looked at her when the man flew across the bar into other people. They were scared of her. She was scared of herself.

More powers started coming to light as Carol tried to reconcile with the changes that were permanently a part of her. It was a lonely life and a burden but she couldn't rewrite history. No matter how much she wanted to.

"I would think staring off into space was monotonous after doing it for a living." She heard Tony Stark say to her left. She turned not necessarily surprised by company but wondered what he was doing there. He was wearing very casual clothes as he strode over to her with intent to stick around and chat.

"I recall you telling me that you had one condition on your trip." He said as he sat down next to her.

Carol looked at him with an excited and surprised look. "Did you really?" She asked with a smile that she couldn't contain.

Tony scoffed and rolled his eyes. "I'll have you know that thing scratched up the interior of my helicopter." He grumbled.

Carol looked back at the ship with a grin still on her face. "She likes to file her nails." She explained and looked to his lap and started laughing. "Also, she doesn't believe in personal space."

Tony looked at his lap and saw orange cat hair all over his black pants and immediately pouted. "You feeling comfortable taking that thing up in space with you?" He asked.

"She's a service pet actually. For comfort and loving." Carol said but felt some guilt for dragging the cat along for an unexpected trip. She only hoped it would be uneventful as they searched for Bruce. "It'll be lonely up there for God only knows how long."

"You'll have Betsy." Tony clarified.

She looked up to him confused. "How do you know about…?" She inquired.

"I took the liberty of setting up your personal home smart system onto your ship to scan your heart rate and other important things when necessary. She introduced herself." Tony reported and put his forearms on the lower hand rail as they sat looking at the ship in silence.

"Nova Corporation loans and generosity into space travel have been very useful to NASA's scientific discoveries. That ship looks like it came out of a sci-fi television show." He said as he looked to it in awe.

"You ever interested in going out to space yourself?" She asked out of curiosity.

"Remember the attack in New York?" He questioned back to her.

Carol thought to herself as recollection filled her mind. "That's right. I remember that being covered on the news. That worm hole in the sky closed with you falling out. You were in space." She pondered and looked to him.

"Haven't had a desire to go back since believe it or not." Tony said and looked off into the distance.

"Yeah and asking someone else who doesn't have great memories of space… That's just easier, right?" She commented. He looked to her apologetically but she smiled and shrugged it off to show him that she didn't have any hard feelings.

"Touché." He smirked. "I am glad that you are doing this for us."

"Not really doing it for anyone, personally. I just don't want to go to jail." Carol responded.

"Fair point." Tony commented. "Be safe out in space, Ms. Danvers."

"And you down here. I hope that whatever is going on in the universe doesn't cause threats here while I'm gone." Carol remarked hopefully.

Tony got up but instead of leaving, he looked to her questioningly with intrigue. "Why? You interested in saving the world again?" He asked.

"What? Joining the Avengers?" She laughed. "You really got the wrong person."

"Well, you got military veteran, S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, and astronaut already crossed off your list. Why not add Avengers to that as well?" Tony pointed out but left it for her to ponder. "Who knows? Maybe the world will need you sooner than later."

"Yeah, maybe." Carol said with heavy doubt. "Thanks for your vote of confidence at least."

"Sign a couple of waivers and we'll be more than happy to have you." He stated as he started walking away.

"Whoever is left of the Avengers will be happy to have me, you mean." Carol said as she looked over her shoulder to see Tony stop in his tracks.

"I watch the news periodically. More than half the team has…been misplaced?" Carol mentioned.

"Classified information." Tony refused to divulge in his sarcastic manner. "Ms. Smarty Pants can't know everything there is to know about the universe. If I told you where they were…"

"Assuming _you know_ where they are…" Carol prodded.

"Wouldn't that be something?" Tony said but Carol could detect a tinge of sadness as he started to leave again. Carol let him. It seemed he had things that needed to be reflected upon like she did. She gave her ship another look and then got up to get back to her apartment. Her cat named Chewie had a long journey ahead and didn't like to travel on an empty stomach.

…

With Chewie on her lap and Carol in a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent uniform, she maneuvered the ship to slowly fly out of Houston's facility as she watched from the windows NASA workers watching her take off. She could see Ricky slightly but then focused her attention back on getting out of the building before she would give the engines full thrust to the sky.

"You ready for this, little guy?" She asked Chewie who was purring and almost half asleep.

"Setting coordinates to Knowhere, Ms. Danvers." Betsy said as her voice echoed throughout the ship.

"Thanks, Betsy." Carol said as she took the controls by hand. "But I think I would rather fly around myself before it goes to manual if that's alright."

"The directions and coordinates will be there when you need them. I recommend we go to hyper speed sooner than later." Betsy suggested as Carol got out of the NASA building with the ship and started flying upwards towards the skies and beyond.

Carol kept the speed going as it started to gain traction. They were getting further away from Earth as she took an appreciation for the technology that the other alien cultures were giving for their space travel adventure.

And then the sky became less blue and more black as the stars freckled space. She took a deep breath as she flew for a small moment out of Earth's atmosphere. From the window she looked below and saw the world. She missed it as the ship started to feel claustrophobic. In reality, the ship could have held so many more people. But like the last time she saw Earth from that point of view, she was alone.

It wasn't the time to focus on the people that were never coming back. She almost thought of it as personal redemption to bring Bruce Banner back home. Where she failed in the last mission, she could have her shot at feeling better about herself if it meant bringing someone back to where they were needed.

"Autopilot now, Ms. Danvers?" Betsy asked.

"Yeah. How far away is Knowhere?" Carol inquired.

"Twelve hours by hyper speed." Betsy answered confidently.

"I might leisurely oversleep then." Carol said as she stood up and put Chewie in her arms who was already sleeping. "My mentality is feeling overwhelmed and drained."

"Sound of rain as usual, Ms. Danvers?" Betsy asked.

"That sounds great. Throw in a little thunder and lightning while you're at it." Carol said as she made her way to the sleeping quarters. The white noise sound of rain started playing in the background while the lights within the ship dimmed automatically. "Everything is cat proof in here, right?" She asked as she laid down on the bed and plopping the cat next to her that seemed okay with going down for a nap next to its master.

"Rest assured if the cat plays with any life threatening buttons, I will rectify the matter immediately." Betsy commented.

"And if any ships that look like the model I showed you are spotted on the scanners?" Carol asked feeling paranoid. She made sure to show Betsy every Kree ship imaginable so she never had to run into those people again. Even if most Kree were good people, it was the fanatics that weren't the nicest to those who disagreed with their belief system.

"I will alert you as soon as possible." Betsy responded calmly. "Get some rest."

"Thank you." Carol said as she could already feel herself doze off. Even though she really only needed sleep for one hour, she didn't mind turning off her mind more than that. She liked to sleep on a normal human schedule even when not needed. It felt normal and it also felt good to dream.

 _Bruce, you better be out there,_ Carol thought as she started to doze off. _I can't be dragged into space just for nothing._


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 _Nope! Bad dream! Wake up, Carol! This isn't a good dream!_

Carol sat up straight from her bed and looked around to see her ship the way she found it with the low hum of the engines working as it continued its way towards Knowhere.

Chewie stirred from her sleep as Carol got up from the bed to shake the feeling of tubes and needles on her skin. It felt too real. Something about being back in space was brining all the fear back as she tried to take it down and calm herself.

"How long was I asleep?" Carol asked as she walked up towards the captain's deck.

"Nine hours and fifteen minutes." Betsy replied. "Are you ready for a quick briefing before you reach your destination? After the briefing, feel free to freshen up and have some dinner."

"Brief away." Carol said as she sat on her chair watching out the window things that zoomed past faster than the speed of light.

"Knowhere is a mining colony that Nova Corporation says it hardly has any jurisdiction over. It's a usual meeting place for pirates, ravagers, and gang members to collect their credits or distasteful slave trafficking." Betsy said with some hesitation as Carol could detect disapproval of Knowhere.

"Oh, great." Carol said half-heartedly as she put her feet up on the dashboard and stared upwards with exhaustion. She overslept. Even she fell into being a victim of oversleeping and its tired effect on the rest of her day. "What are you doing in a place like that, Dr. Banner?" She asked mostly to herself.

An alarm went off in the ship as Carol looked to see red lights brightening up around her ship in warning.

"Betsy, what's going on in the galaxy?" Carol asked as she stood up and walked to the computer to look at any data information to see if it had anything to reveal.

"Xandar has declared an official warning across the galaxy." Betsy clarified. "The Nova Corporation has been attacked at their headquarters just a few short moments ago. The entire galaxy has been issued in a state of emergency."

A noise erupted as it quickly passed with her ship going through hyper speed. Carol looked out the window with all of her nerves on edge. "That must have been a big explosion that we just passed if we could have heard it going as fast as we were." She mentioned. "Should we get out of hyper speed?"

"Whatever has passed us is long gone now, Ms. Danvers." Betsy reasoned. "A place that has no political ties might be the safest place to be located."

"Knowhere it is, then." Carol mumbled.

"Would you like to relay a message to Earth?" Betsy asked kindly.

"Sure." Carol agreed and found the recordings on the computer. "Might be useful for everyone down there to see what's going on."

The red button indicated that it was recording as Carol looked to the camera. "This is Captain Danvers en route to Knowhere in the Andromeda galaxy. Only a short moment ago, the Nova Corporation issued a state of emergency. Their headquarters has been attacked. Tony, am I getting paid for this mission? I know that doing this job was more because I would rather go to space than to jail but…seeing as my life could be at stake here… Whatever, we'll work out the kinks when I get back." Carol suggested to the unresponsive high tech computer screen. "I don't know what's happening down on Earth. I hope that whatever is happening here hasn't really changed there. Just keep your eyes opened. Some cosmic power is trying to cause big trouble. Captain Danvers out."

Carol turned the recording off and walked down to her quarters. "I'm gonna freshen up a bit before we land. Keep me posted if anything changes." She stressed as she shook her head.

"Should I worry you about your heart rate speeding up irregularly, Ms. Danvers?" Betsy inquired as Carol kept on walking towards the showers.

"It's fine. I just need a minute." Carol said as she walked to the sink only half surprised to see Chewie laying inside of it. She picked her up and sent her scurrying off and then turned around to look at herself in the mirror. Her skin was paler than usual as she felt her arms and legs feel cold. Blood wasn't getting to those parts of her body while the rest of her felt like it was on fire.

Sweat dripped from her forehead as she leaned over the bathroom sink. "I wasn't ready for this." Carol confessed to herself. She looked up to see her eyes in the mirror as if to talk common sense back into the picture. "They don't know you're out here. You're okay." She said and took a deep breath. "You're okay."

Carol quickly and shakily wiped the sweat from her face with her arm as she prepared to get in the shower and cool down before walking into the unknown of Knowhere.

…

"Slowing hyper speed upon arrival, Ms. Danvers." Betsy declared. "Would you like to drive to the surface?"

"My pleasure." Carol said taking her seat at the front. Chewie climbed up to the co-captain seat and sat up straight looking out the window to see what was going on.

Carol put her hands on the steering as a view fell before her unlike anything she has ever seen. "What is this?" She asked Betsy in wonder.

"Knowhere is not a planet. It's the remains of an ancient Celestial Being according to the Nova Corporation records." Betsy stated as Carol marveled at the scene in front of her with a jaw agape.

"I guess there are some things about space that I _don't_ know." She said as she slowed her speed to enter into a giant skull from the eye hole. Things seemed like people and their ships were hustling at a normal pace. Whatever hit Xandar hadn't made its presence known in all corners of Andromeda.

"Where is Dr. Banner's ship located within this place?" Carol said as she looked all around her hoping maybe she would run into a big green guy to make her job easier.

"12 kilometers from here on your right." Betsy said.

As Carol got closer, she saw a sign that beamed blue as her mood immediately felt deflated. "Pawn service? See that symbol?" Carol said dejectedly to Betsy.

"Dr. Banner's ship is within that junkyard." Betsy confirmed.

"Do you know what this means?" Carol asked. "It means that this whole mission was a bust. Dr. Banner isn't going to be anywhere near this place. His abandoned ship was left to sell and someone accidentally pushed the homing beacon on."

"But Ms. Danvers…" Betsy tried to cut in.

"No. We're gassing up and heading back home. I don't need this sh…" Carol tried to say but was interrupted by Betsy speaking over her.

"Isn't that Bruce Banner walking away from the pawn service?" Betsy asked as Carol looked to see what she was talking about. There was a man who was trying to keep a low key as he kept his head down. Without the computer telling her it was a match to Bruce Banner's identity, she knew her trip in space would be over quicker than she thought.

"Shit." Carol said as she hurriedly got out of her seat and grabbed Chewie. Betsy took control of the ship and started to land while Carol put Chewie in her pet crate.

"If anyone tries to steal my ship or anything on my ship, use brutal force!" Carol stated as she pushed the button for the door to open to the outside.

"Will do. Be safe out there, Captain." Betsy said as the door closed behind Carol.

Carol quickly started to tail Bruce but as she got closer she started being more subtle and less obvious. She had only been an agent of SHIELD for eighteen months. In fact, she was on the carrier when the Avengers first got together and Loki was taken captive. She had seen the damage that the Hulk had done first hand. She wondered if even she could be evenly matched with him. There was only one time where she lost her cool with her powers but she had no recollection of the whole ordeal. She was only informed that she was close to killing everyone within a hundred mile radius. It was a huge reason why she decided to stay in the shadows.

A part of her wondered if that was the reason Bruce chose to leave Earth. It was exhausting trying to keep powers in control at all times of the day. She had levels of power. Carol knew Bruce had only two modes and it was normal to Hulk. It sounded like a headache even to her.

Carol watched as Bruce stopped and started turning his head around. She quickly found the nearest person and was glad it was a guy as she put his arm over her shoulder and pretended to laugh.

Then she noticed the guy was talking to a girl with purple skin as she looked to over her shoulder to see if Bruce was in the area. He still appeared to be looking around the market area as Carol put her hand on the man's backside to be as inconspicuous as possible.

"Who do you think you are?" The girl with the purple skin asked. "He was talking to me!"

Carol looked at the woman who was dressed to have a good night and then to the guy next to her. He looked mildly entertained at how forward she was feigning to be with a half-smile of intrigue.

Carol was surprised to see how human he looked. She knew a few humans pocketed the universe but they were limited. It stunned her but she maintained focus on her mission all the same. "I'll give you a thousand credits if you grab my butt. Now!" She demanded quietly.

He shrugged and did what he was asked as he tried to look around for trouble.

"Don't look around!" She said as the purple woman rolled her eyes and walked away furiously.

"Anyone giving you trouble?" He asked looking directly at her as she detected a small amount of concern. "If you need me to talk to someone for you, I will tell them to leave a respectful and independent woman like yourself alone. People that don't value a strong woman…they are just not right in my book." He said as he tried to schmooze her while she was only half paying attention.

"No. I just don't want to…" Carol stopped and looked up at him as she gave him a brief look from head to toe. It was the wrong time to think about anything besides her mission but she couldn't deny it. He was very handsome and it was very distracting. She saw headphones around his neck as she thought it looked particularly strange to see something like that in space. Distracted yet again by the person, she turned around to see Bruce no longer where she thought he would be.

She groaned and took his hand that was firmly placed on her rear away as she started walking towards a possible direction that he was headed. And it looked to be inside of a bar.

"Hey!" The man called behind her. "You said something about a thousand credits?"

"Consider it an I.O.U." Carol called back and looked to him with a wink. "Catch ya later, babe."

She didn't detect him following her as she tried to locate Bruce inside the bar. It appeared to be a rough and tumble place as she looked around for any signs of the doctor anywhere.

Suddenly she sensed someone behind her reach for her shoulders. She ducked and leaned out of the way to turn around and see Bruce in the flesh looking at her with shock.

"You guys don't know limitations, do you?" He asked her as he looked around them concerned that they were going to draw attention.

Carol looked at her outfit as it was undoubtedly a S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform with the symbol on her right shoulder. "Dr. Banner, my name is Captain Carol Danvers and I…" She started.

"How many people are with you?!" He asked.

Carol looked confused but then realized he probably had no idea that she could handle her mission all by herself. "It's just me." She clarified.

"They sent you all by yourself?" Bruce asked.

"They meaning Tony Stark? Yeah, he sent me here to find you." Carol said to plead to his emotions. "He just wanted to know that you are okay."

"Tell him I'm fine." Bruce exhaled and started walking away.

Carol could have very well just left him and just chalked the mission up as good as over. However, she knew Tony would be dissatisfied with the outcome and would have asked her to come back. She sighed angrily and started following him again.

"Dr. Banner, I need you to at least hear me out. I have come all this way to find you. At least give me the time of day." Carol said in somewhat annoyance as he stood near an entry way and turned around to face her.

"Alright. You have five minutes until I get upset." Bruce said with arms folded.

Carol eyed him as if to tell him that she wasn't scared of him. "That's how it works? It just goes off like a timer?" She questioned with ridicule.

"You have five seconds." Bruce said with zero ounce of giving in.

Carol paused with a deep breath then said what needed to be said. "The world needs you again." She stated.

"Yeah, do they need the Ph.D. doctor or the big guy?" He asked with skepticism.

"Both perhaps?" Carol answered with another question to indicate that she didn't really know what was happening. "Bad things are going to happen on Earth. Something bad is coming." Carol said with slight urgency. "I would think they needed your smarts just as much as your brute strength."

"I'm sure." Bruce replied sarcastically. "I heard what you have to say and I made a hasty decision to not go back with you to Earth. The Avengers will be fine without me."

"Hasty decision? So…you realize it's hasty to decide something at the moment and are going to take back what you said?" Carol asked.

"What? No!" Bruce denied and looked around the bar. "You need to leave." He started to look frustrated and shook his head. "Why? Why would Stark bring you here to find me? Why you?"

"If you're dying to know, you have to come with me back to Earth." Carol tried to coerce but knew it was a lame trick to get him to budge.

"Nope. Not bothering me that much." Bruce said and stepped back to his little corner to indicate he was done.

"Look, you aren't coming with me. I accept your right to your own personal exile. But before I go back, I at least need to know why you are staying. I need a reason or else Tony is going to send me back. Or maybe he'll come back himself. He might not take no for an answer and you know it!" Carol explained. "Please just give me a reason why being in the middle of Knowhere is better than being in a place where you belong."

Bruce huffed in frustration as he pursed his lips together. "It's a long story and I don't have time to tell it right now." He spoke quietly as if he didn't want others to hear. Carol recalled the way he was sneaking around. It didn't occur to her that before he saw her that he was worried about another encounter from another person.

"Listen, I have both military and agent background. If you need back up for something, I can help you out." Carol said in a low voice as she got closer to him so their conversation couldn't be overheard.

"I really don't want to drag you into this. I don't know if you are prepared for what happens in our universe." Bruce admitted almost looking apologetic that her presence in the bar was going to hurt her.

Carol scoffed. "Doctor, you have no idea how many credentials I have for a job like this." She said as she wished that she could bite her tongue off. Her mission could be done. Tony could force her into going back but she did what she had to do. She didn't know why she was getting further involved to prolong her own solitude that she desired. She summed it up to being her military side of her. If someone looked like they needed help, she was a sucker into providing said help. It was instilled inside her brain that when someone needed assistance, she was obligated to be a first responder.

"I've been followed for a while." Bruce confessed and looked behind her.

"By who and how many?" Carol asked without looking around already in stealth mode.

"One person. He's followed me all across the galaxy. I don't see him here." Bruce said and looked to her.

"Has he seen the Hulk?" She thought to ask.

"Yes which is probably why he is keeping his distance. For now." Bruce said and looked to her. "I really don't want to involve you. You seem like a nice person but I don't know if you are up to something that is this much danger."

Carol looked at him with a smirk. "I was hoping for more monumental time where it was like borderline badass to show this off but I guess now is a good time." She said and put her hand up simply and not at all flashy. Her hand started to glow with light as Bruce looked at her quizzically.

"Ta-da." She said as the light slowly went away. "I told you that you have no idea what you are talking about."

A door opened to their left as a woman with pink skin walked out awkwardly and bowed in front of Bruce. "Master Bruce. You have been summoned by my master. He is anxious to speak with you." She said with a smile.

Carol looked to Bruce with confusion at what was going to happen. He only shrugged it off as he started walking into the other building where whoever summoned him awaited.

Bruce turned around to look at her. "This is the time to back out." He clarified.

Carol took a deep breath and looked around her. "You need my help." She said in less of a question and more of a fact.

"I don't want to ask for it but only if you can handle this." Bruce explained.

"But you do need help." Carol wanted to hear him say it.

"Yes." He admitted.

"If I help you, you at least call Tony from my ship and explain to him yourself." Carol reasoned. "I want him to know that your decision is out of my control."

"Deal." Bruce said and they both started walking together. Carol had no idea what she had just gotten herself into.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Carol didn't have to look where all the trafficking came from in Knowhere. In the building where Bruce was ushered inside were many persons inside window enclosures that longed for escape. Creatures of every kind looked directly into Carol's eyes as she put her head down to avoid their silent calls for help. Carol felt extremely uncomfortable standing by and watching them stay inside their cages. She had been in that situation before and wished that she could have had someone save her.

"What the hell are we doing? What kind of crap are you into?" Carol asked in a sharp whisper as Bruce walked ahead of her.

"You want me to explain? I'll explain after we get something important and are in a secure location. Now is not the time to ask questions." Bruce responded while Carol made a face of insult when he turned his back. She kicked herself for feeling obligated to help him out. She wished that she could just go back to her ship and be done with the entire mission like she should have done.

The lady who guided them took them to the center of the room and turned to face them. "Please wait here as I get the Collector." She said as she walked away and left them.

Bruce looked around but as he faced Carol, she folded her arms and looked at him expectedly. "We have time now. I think it's the perfect time to explain what is going on." Carol insisted and continued to lock eyes with him.

"Where do you want me to start?" Bruce asked.

"Where it's relevant. Obviously." Carol countered. "Why Knowhere? Why this place?"

"Since making my way into space, I have done some digging. What the Avengers have fought against. The Tesseract and Loki's specter. They are connected." Bruce tried to explain but Carol was immediately lost.

"So wait…" Carol said as she tried to understand what was relevant to what he was saying. "That's what you have been doing up here? Research?" She asked.

"I discovered all of this when I was with a friend. The Tesseract is powerful. And there are five others like it." Bruce explained.

"There are six Tesseract's?" Carol asked confused.

"No. They are called Infinity Stones." Bruce corrected. "The Tesseract has a blue gem inside of it that gives it power. You hear of Vision?"

Carol nodded knowing he was talking about one of the newest Avengers.

"He's also powered by another gem." Bruce said. "Asgard has one. Earth has one. Xandar has one. And there is also one here."

"Are you trying to assemble them together?" Carol asked.

"I'm trying to make sure that each of them are in the right hands." Bruce said honestly.

"You mentioned where four are. Where are the other two?" Carol questioned.

Bruce was about to say something but they were interrupted by their lady guide who walked into the room once again.

"I present to you the Collect…" The lady who summoned them started to say but was pushed hastily by the man in charge.

"No need for formalities." The Collector said and looked to the woman. "On your way."

"Yes, sir." She said with her head low and walked away from them. Carol felt bad for her but instantly focused on what was going on. The Collector didn't really seem that collected to her which made her on edge.

"I need you to do something for me." The man said quickly and started walking away expecting them to follow.

"It has taken me almost a month to speak with you!" Bruce nagged but they both followed him through his assortment of artifacts. "Now you want favors?"

"Rest assured, it will work for both of us." The Collector maintained as he walked up thin and narrow stairs. "I am sure you have heard what is happening on Xandar?"

Bruce looked to Carol in question as he appeared uninformed about the danger one of the neighboring planets.

"The Nova Corporation was attacked. The entire galaxy has been issued in a state of emergency." Carol clarified.

Bruce looked to her with wide eyes. "The Orb." He said in a final tone and with dread.

The Collector stopped and looked at a metal casing as he opened it up from the top. He retrieved a box that glowed red by a small rim in the middle. Carol looked to Bruce as he walked forward slowly in disbelief.

"I don't believe it." Bruce said. "This is it. This is what I've been looking for." He looked up to the Collector quickly but then looked back at the small box. "How much do you want for it?"

"Take it." The Collector said. "I don't want to be involved with one of these things ever again. It is all yours."

"Great." Bruce said and looked to Carol. "This is when we got to run."

Carol had a quizzical brow and grabbed for the Collector's forearm and didn't let go. He looked distressed as he couldn't break away from her grasp. "I feel like his bringing up the Xandar attack and this package aren't too separate from each other." She stated as she looked him in the eye menacingly.

"You are a clever fräulein, aren't you?" They heard someone say on the main floor as they heard the Collector with alarm.

"This man has been asking about you for the past week." The Collector said to Bruce. "I suggest you proceed with caution."

"Who is he?" Carol whispered to the Collector and to Bruce. She felt like she wasn't very trusting to anyone in the entire room. Even Dr. Banner.

"Is there a reason you want this off your hands?" Bruce asked slowly as if to contain the beast within.

"Having it is not worth the cost." The Collector said and started backing away when Carol let go of him as she became more worried about the new guest. "Best of luck." He said and started to take off at his full speed.

"Hey!" Carol called to him but made a face when he was long gone behind all the many collections he hoarded throughout the years. "Asshole!"

"Should we prolong this encounter, doctor?" The voice called again. Carol could hear steps get closer but he hid behind more window enclosures that hadn't been cleaned thoroughly in years. She could only see red where a face would have been. It was unnerving to detect a German accent with the man. With the encounter of the man with headphones, Carol was starting to wonder how many people on Earth liked to travel to Knowhere.

"Fine, let's not prolong it." Bruce said as Carol slowly walked down the stairs. Both she and Bruce walked in the opposite direction as the man stayed behind in the shadows keeping his distance from what the Hulk could possibly release. "You and I both know you can't take this from me. Even if you wanted to. It's over."

"I can most certainly try. You are the only person that stands between me and an infinity stone. Desperate times call for desperate measures." The voice said as Carol could see him walk closer. Carol's eyes widened as everything started to make sense. One of the reasons she stayed low was when she found out about Hydra's infestation inside S.H.I.E.L.D. Everything she stood for was meshed with very bad things. She knew about Hydra. She knew about their founder. No one knew what happened to him. It was as if he disappeared into thin air. But it was all starting to make sense as she recognized the red face. No one else had a face like that.

"You're wrong. I have backup now." Bruce said and looked to Carol.

Carol looked to him and shook her head. "What? No." She said quietly with insecurity.

"Come on. Help me out, Captain." Bruce encouraged but she just rolled her eyes.

"Fine." She groaned quietly. All she wanted was to get back on her ship and curl up in fetal position. She didn't want to be involved in what was started to sound like a life or death situation for the entire universe. It was out of her comfort zone.

"Your time with that stone is small, Dr. Banner." The man said as he stood out of the shadows with an old pistol in his hands. Carol took a deep breath as he guess was confirmed to be correct.

Red Skull.

"We're walking out of here." Bruce said as he slowly started walking toward the entrance never taking his eyes off Red Skull.

"You will try." Red Skull said and brought his pistol up. Carol quickly put her hand up and shot an energy blast towards him at the same time that he pulled the trigger. His gun blasted a blue energy blast that surprised Carol. She assumed it would be a regular bullet. Both energies hit each other as an explosion emerged on impact that sent both Bruce and Carol flying in one direction and Red Skull flying in another.

Carol shook her head as she tried to get herself back. Usually things weren't a threat to her but whatever his energy blast was made out of wasn't to be taken lightly.

The explosion subsided as what was left of the room lay in burning rubble at their feet. Smoke permeated the air, making it impossible to see anything more than a few inches in front of her face. Carol coughed, wiping ash from her hands as she stood. She could hear Bruce do the same in close proximity to her while she tried to see where the imminent threat was.

As the smoke cleared, Carol could see Red Skull aim to fire again. She revved her hand to shoot an energy blast that was more powerful than the last. She shot at him again and again causing an explosion with every hit. She could see him running and kept him in her sights as best she could while taking cover.

"Bruce! Get down! I don't know what that blue blast thingy does when it hits a person and I don't want to find out!" She stressed.

"We need to get out of here! That needs to be the only plan right now!" He countered back but got down anyways. Carol watched as he breathed slowly while blue shots would burst above them.

"Are you okay?" She asked over the noise and turned around to see where the Red Skull was. She couldn't find him.

"Hulk can't come out right now!" Bruce stressed. "This is too important and he could mess this up!"

"I don't know, I think him making an appearance wouldn't be the worst idea." Carol mentioned and saw movement from her peripherals. She swung her hands to the far right as an energy blast ended up shooting at nothing. "I feel like I'm doing all the work right now! You said you needed me as 'back-up!'" She mumbled for Bruce to hear the complaint in her voice.

"You know what? You are being very…" Bruce started to say but was cut off as more shots from his pistol rained upon them. Carol looked around the Collector's many broken treasures to find anything that she could use to her advantage. She found something that looked optimal and ripped a piece of a metal door from one of the window display pedestals to block whatever Red Skull's gun was shooting and then used her other hand to shoot at him some more. She managed to shoot him in the chest finally as he flew backwards from the force. She peeked over her makeshift shield and stood up tall in a slow manner wondering if the danger was really over.

"Let's get out of here while we still can." Bruce said in a final tone and started walking out in the open towards the exit with the black box in one hand.

Then Carol saw the Red Skull move quickly and aim his gun towards Bruce. "No!" Carol yelled as she shot at the Red Skull again when he fired his gun straight at Bruce.

Red Skull went down once more from her blast but Carol darted her gaze at Bruce when she heard a loud shaky moan that started to sound like Bruce in pain but his wail formed into a deeper timbre as Carol's eyes widened. Bruce may have been the one to be hit by the blast, but someone else was coming from inside of him to counter the attack.

"Crap." Carol shrieked as she turned to look at Bruce who was quickly turning green. "What do you want me to do?" She asked him not really expecting an answer but noticed that her own energy blast at the Red Skull weren't doing anything to kill him. Even as she thought that, she could see him sit back up ready for another fight.

Carol watched his body started to expand as it fended off the blue energy attempting to completely obliterate him. All he could do was throw the red box that held one infinity stone at her. Catching it effortlessly, she realized Bruce wanted her to protect it for as long as she could. A blast shot next to where she was hidden. Staying low, she began gathering energy in her hands in order to retaliate when the Hulk's deafening sounded in front of her.

"Good god, that is loud!" Carol shouted as his yell shook her to the core. Her ears almost popped from the noise as she had to open and shut her jaw to get some hearing back. He started tearing apart chunks of debris within the room as he threw them towards the Red Skull.

Carol lifted her hands up in order to help with the fight, but was caught off guard by their appearance. They weren't the regular white she had grown accustomed to, but rather an iridescent red, matching that of the shining stone within the box.

A feeling started to grow inside of her that was bordering the sensation of being out of control. It was a familiar feeling but different at the same time. She didn't know much about the infinity stones but was starting to realize that these could be the most powerful energy sources in existence. Even with the stone encased, she could feel herself absorbing its energy, overriding whatever protection the box should have provided.

She wondered what the gem was supposed to do. As she speculated, everything seemed to slow down and become darker. Everything around her appeared as if she were underwater. The gem was messing with her mind, her consciousness, and she soon realized she could no longer hear anything. At this point, she lost track of both Hulk and the Red Skull. Her surroundings didn't seem like the Collector's place. It was as if she were traveling through a portal. Everything around her continued to change the deeper she fell and just when she began to ascertain her surroundings, she would be sucked into another portal altogether.

The scenes would switch around her. From planet to planet. She saw Spartax. Morag. K'ai. Earth. And then Hala. The last sight took her breath away as she started to scream but no noise followed. She almost felt claustrophobic even when the views around her were wide open. She could feel her whole body shake as it was trying to absorb every power the gem contained. She tried to blink her eyes shut and open them back up as a way to snap her back into reality.

There was nothing she could do. It felt impossible to try and get back to where she needed to be. Then there was a feeling of floating as she saw nothing but stars and then she felt herself be wrenched back into reality. Everything was back to where it had been only moments before. She was standing alone in the shattered remains of the Collector's homestead. She scanned the room, but found the Red Skull and the Hulk were nowhere to be seen. It was eerily quiet. There were no gun blasts, no explosions, no sound whatsoever and for a brief moment she worried if she was in fact in the right place. Then she heard the distinctive bellow of the Hulk from outside.

She looked down expecting to see the box with the gem in her hands but it was nowhere in sight.

"Good going, you freaking idiot." Carol mumbled to herself as she started to run out of the building to see what was going on outside.

…

Clambering through what was left of the entryway, Carol had only a moment to raise her arms and block her face from the debris flying her direction.

The Hulk was on a war path and the Red Skull continued firing bolts of blue energy that ricocheted in every which direction.

"That gun never runs out of blue crap!" She muttered to herself, "This is ridiculous!"

Their skirmish, no longer contained within the Collector's shop, had spilled into the dilapidated, industrialized streets and the people of Knowhere were fleeing for their lives. While Bruce Banner was ever mindful of the people around him, the Hulk was a loose cannon. He grabbed whatever was nearby and hurled it through the air haphazardly.

"This is bad," Carol looked between Red Skull and Hulk before her. "Red and green are happy complimenting colors. Christmas and peppermints, but this is so so bad!"

It was then, as the Red Skull shot another round at the Hulk that she realized what he was holding in his other hand.

"That son of a bitch!" She exclaimed, her hands beginning to glow, "Bruce!"

The Hulk paid her little heed as he threw the metal siding from a nearby building across the street.

"Bruce!" She yelled again. "He's got the box!"

The Hulk hesitated, looked her direction, and just as she was about to explain again, a blast of blue energy threw him backwards through several buildings.

With the Hulk out of his immediate vicinity, Red Skull turned his attention back to her, "I have to thank for this gem. You have made my trip an incredible success." He gloated.

As if she meant nothing, he turned his back on her and began to walk down the now empty street.

Carol wasn't sure whether it was the effects of the stone she'd just held or her anger fueling her fury, but the light emitting from her hands tripled and when she raised them to take aim, a blast of energy unlike anything she had ever produced before erupted.

The glare from her hands was so bright that it forced Carol to turn her head away and squeeze her eyes shut in an attempt to relieve her eyes. When she finally reeled in her powers, her chest was heaving, and she had felt like she'd finished a week's worth of boot camp in a span of minutes. Peeking out of one eye, she gasped at the scene before her.

There was a perfect circle cut into the buildings in front of her as far as she could see. The edges were still glowing red-orange from the heat of her blast melting away the core of the structures. However, the Red Skull was nowhere to be seen.

"Are you dead?" Carol called out while squinting her eyes to scan through the haze for his striking red features.

"I am sorry, my dear," his German accent thick through the settling fog, "but I am not that easy to eliminate."

"How…" she managed to exhale.

"When you live among the gods for as long as I have, you eventually become one." He chided.

Still desperately searching the carnage, she finally saw him step out from behind one of the buildings still partially intact. He raised his gun at her and gave her a wicked grin.

She was drained; only able to create sparks of electricity that fizzled out at her fingertips. She could barely stand upright and her legs felt like she had a two ton weight strapped to her ankles. After that thrust of energy, she couldn't even will herself to think of doing anything extraordinary. It was playing well with her emotions. Whatever was happening with her felt like the most bizarre thing. She almost felt human again.

With the box Bruce had given her still tightly held within Red Skull's grasp, Carol was helpless to move as blue began illuminating the barrel of his gun. She felt white, hot fear flash through her. The ground began to quake under her feet and she was sure her legs were shaking. The rumbling intensified and she quickly realized that the ground was literally pulsating underneath her. Red Skull had also seemed to notice the abnormal sensation and was no longer looking at her. Using the distraction, Carol willed her legs to move just as she caught sight of a smaller sized spaceship landing right where the Red Skull had been standing.

A roar pierced the air as the Hulk fell from the sky.

"Good job, buddy." She said in a huff and took a couple more deep breaths before she decided to get back into the action.

Finding cover behind a metal structure beam, she peered around the corner. The Red Skull was nowhere to be seen but amongst the rubble was a black box with metallic, gold trim lit in the middle by a glowing red light.

She straightened, tilting her head back against the cold, smooth beam and took a deep breath. "You can do this. Just run out there, grab it, and run back. It's easy. Just have to run…as fast as you can. You got this." Carol encouraged herself.

Pushing off the pillar, gathering every ounce of strength she had left, she ran. She had no idea where the Red Skull was, but she could hear the high pitched echo of his rifle being fired and the Hulk's boisterous yell. All she had to do was get to the box before the Hulk was either incapacitated or completely demolished that tattered remains of the level they were on in Knowhere. Glancing to her left, she estimated that it was at least a thousand foot drop between where they were and the next level.

Just as she was about to grab for the handle on the top of the box, a blue blast shot near her feet and sent her flipping through the air. But as the energy of the blast still hung in the air around her, she could feel the familiar power inside of her coming back as it used the blue energy for her advantage. She shot a white glow towards him while she was still flying in mid-air. It hit him as he fell backwards from the force. It wasn't as powerful as the last time she tried to strike him; not in the slightest. However, she knew it would at least distract him until she was done flying out of control.

Flying! It was her least favorite ability but it did come in handy when she needed it. When she tried to prepare her body for what seemed like the impossible, her body was telling her it _was,_ in fact, impossible. Whether it was the gravity that was different on Knowhere which made it difficult to fly or the infinity stone that was still throwing off what she knew to be as easy as times tables, she couldn't say. She only knew her ability to fly wasn't helping her out of the mess she was in. She could strategically fall where it would hurt the least but flying was going to be near impossible within the mining colony. When she finally landed, she fell near the floor level's edge and bounced off the side only to catch herself at last minute.

She held on to the metal edge while watching helplessly as the Red Skull picked the box up and started to walk away. He briefly looked at her once with a small smile and then continued on his way. She tried to pull herself up while her lower body just hung over the thousands of feet. She could try to land at this level but she never landed from as high as she was without her flying abilities. She could very well end up like a pancake.

She pulled herself up as the metal made a moan of strain. She looked at the entire ledge as it started to tilt downwards. Carol continued to try and pull herself up however the more that she moved, the move the ledge started to give way.

Carol started to swing her lower body but once her left leg found a position on the edge, the metal snapped as it fell away from the surface.

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Carol screamed as she started falling downwards to the main ground of Knowhere.

She flipped through the air as she tried to keep her feet closest to the ground. Carol hoped that she could survive the fall. She never tried landing from that height before but didn't really have a choice but to be optimistic. Worst case scenario was if she survived, her legs would most likely be broken. All she had to do was just lay down until they healed themselves within a couple of hours. If her strength decided to return ever. While plummeting to her death, she worried whether or not, her abilities were completely ruined by holding the black box with the infinity stone inside.

Then her fall was interrupted surprisingly as she could feel herself enclosed by a lot of green. The Hulk had caught her in mid-air as they both fell to the ground. She closed her eyes tight waiting for the brace of the impact.

The Hulk landed on his back as they skidded to a dead stop on the main ground of Knowhere. Carol laid on top of his chest in fetal position as she waited to feel safe. Nothing bad happened. It took her awhile to figure out that she was out of danger. She lived to tell the tale.

Carol sat up and stepped off the Hulk that got on his own two feet.

Then she remembered. "No!" Carol said and looked around to see more signs of catastrophe. Suddenly they both spotted a ship as it took off and started flying out of Knowhere.

"Bruce," Carol said quietly as she could feel the familiar feeling of her powers returning. They weren't gone after all as the effects of the gem subsided. "The gem is gone."

The Hulk looked from her and back to the ship. His chest moved up and down in fits as he started breathing angrily and started stalking towards the ship that was well out of their way for good. He made his way in a marketplace area where Carol could see people looking out the windows with fear in their eyes. She saw eyes like that on a couple of military tours and being an agent in S.H.I.E.L.D. That look of fear came from the threat and Hulk was having no problems fitting into that category.

"Stop!" Carol said as she put her arms around his thigh and started tugging Hulk back and away from the other people. "He's already gone and we need Bruce back."

The Hulk turned around and yelled in Carol's face. She yelled back but it almost sounded like a cry of terror more than a cry for intimidation. He yelled again to out-shout her pathetic attempt before. Every yell of his vibrated throughout her entire body and instantly sent shivers down her spine.

"STOP YELLING IN MY FACE! GOOD LORD!" Carol screamed at him as she continued to try and keep him away from the fearful crowd that was hiding within any building to stay from him as much as they possibly could.

"Let's not forget who was the idiot that just waltzed towards the exit and then got shot by a blaster in the first place! Oh no! That wasn't me! That was the dumb green guy thinking everything was just hunky dory!" Carol went off on a rant as she continued trying to pull him.

Carol looked up at his shoulders when a movement caught her eye. She instantly gave a confused brow as it looked like tree branches grabbing him as it seemed to work the more the branches grew. The branches were reaching from above the ceiling and into the darkness. Whatever the source was, it was working. Hulk became more agitated as he realized he wasn't making any progress with chasing the Red Skull down. But Carol saw people in immediate danger. From Hulk. Whatever plans the Red Skull had was out of her hands. She had to eliminate the major problem first.

While the magical branches that came out of nowhere kept Hulk in place for the time being, Carol moved to stand in front of him to push him backwards with all of her might. He was six times her size but she wasn't going to give up the fight when she knew she had a chance.

Carol yelled as she pushed, leaning against Hulk. With his arms being held back, it was easier to keep her grip without being shoved violently away.

"Snap out of it, Bruce!" Carol screamed. "JUST. CALM. DOWN!" She pushed harder as her hands started to glow. Suddenly, she saw Hulk's feet start sliding backwards. She was winning.

Hulk realized that he was also being pushed backwards as his eyes widened with disbelief. Then the emotion immediately went to anger again as he started tugging on the tree branches that randomly held his shoulders. Then he planted one leg firmly on the ground and revved his other leg.

"Bruce! Don't!" Carol cautioned with fear. "I don't want to hurt you!"

And then the Hulk kicked her right in the stomach the same time she shot out an energy blast at his face. She heard him yelp in pain as she went flying through the air with no control from the force of his kick.

She landed on her back as she could feel the ground shake from Hulk going down from her blast. She didn't hold anything back when she hit him. Her head hit the ground hard as her vision appeared hazy.

She saw Hulk in the distance lay face down as she breathed a sigh of relief. "Sorry." She muttered tiredly as she could feel her human side take over. Whatever hurt in her body would be rectified when she woke up. But in the meantime, she needed some sleep.

A blur came above Carol as she laid on her back staring at the ceiling. She blinked several times to see a man staring down at her. It was the man who she ran into earlier that night with the headphones.

" _Holy…shit! Are…you…okay?"_ His voice sounded distant as he knelt down above her.

She blinked again as her eyes became heavy but she didn't respond. It was time to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Carol felt someone's knee rest upon the mattress that she laid on top of. She was waking up from the strangest dream about a multi-billionaire asking her to go to space and get a Hulk. It was the trippiest thing as she tried to remember where she was. Whoever was invading her space on the mattress was humming to himself that were soon interrupted by him also making guitar solo noises.

Did she decide to have a little fun before she left Las Vegas? Then it occurred to her that she left Vegas with Tony Stark in a very non promiscuous way. Her job in space! It was very much a reality.

Suddenly, Carol could hear music blasting loudly as she kept her eyes closed drifting in and out of sleep. The weight from whoever was on the mattress left as music filled the entire space. She put a pillow over her face as she wished she could just sleep. Something was peculiar about the melody and it seemed out of place with her surroundings if she was indeed in space. She heard this song before. It played many times when her dad would turn it on in the garage while he fixed his dream car up. What was odd about the tune was that Earth's music never transferred to outside worlds. Yet she could hear Norman Greenbaum's _Spirit in the Sky_ tune playing clear as day.

She turned her head to the side as she opened her eyes. She saw a tree… fixing a part of a ship that carried both of them across the galaxy. At least she knew that was in a ship but the sight in front of her wasn't promising. Hallucinations could have been a plausible reason.

Then she saw a raccoon scurry on the engineering tree and knew that she was still out of it. She groaned as she faced away from them holding her stomach as her body was making its final healing after the Hulk literally kicked every organ she had.

"Lady, if you're gonna hurl, mind doing it in another room so we ain't gotta smell it?" A voice said behind her. She made a confused look as she turned around again to see the tree and raccoon staring at her.

Carol sat up as alertness started taking place over the confusion but regretted the decision when she felt a whole lot of pain around her waist. Where was she? Where was Bruce Banner? Whose ship was she on?

Then suddenly, as if Bruce could hear the confusion that sounded loud in her own mind, walked into the room from small and narrow stairs. He immediately looked to her in concern as made his way over next to her. "You're alright? How do you feel?" He asked in relief.

"I'll be fine. How are you? The last thing I remember is knocking you out." Carol said as she tried to stand. Bones were the last thing that healed as she felt some ribs crack when she tried to stand up straight. Bruce noticed as he rushed to her side to try and get her to sit back down.

"Don't worry. I'm okay," He said and sat next to her as she put both arms around her middle in a tight hug. Bruce watched her apologetically as she kept her eyes closed while rocking herself to soothe the stress she felt. "This is why I can't go back with you. I'm not worth the hassle."

"Yet, you feel fine staying with us." Carol heard someone say sarcastically as she peered up to see the raccoon staring at both of them. "What the hell are you guys anyways?" The raccoon asked.

Carol looked at Bruce with a weirded out face as the tree stood up tall with the raccoon still sitting on its shoulders. What was she thinking? Trees didn't have shoulders!

"Carol this is Rocket and Groot. They picked us up on Knowhere and are taking us to Xandar to discuss the Infinity Stone with Nova Corps leader, Irani Rael." Bruce said as he introduced the raccoon and tree that apparently had names.

"Which one of you is Rocket and which one of you is Groot?" Carol questioned only because she couldn't think of anything else to say that didn't sound crazy.

"I am Groot." The tree said simply in a low abysmal voice.

Carol started to panic and looked to Bruce. "I had a ship on Knowhere!" She exclaimed.

"Don't worry about it. Our new friends are driving behind us with your ship." Bruce explained.

A man cleared his throat and began to talk, "Yeah, you were a little in and out of it when we helped you guys out on Knowhere. You told us all about your ship." Carol looked to where the voice came from as he sat in the captain's seat driving his own ship. _Headphones-Man_ , Carol thought to herself. "Something about a Betsy and a Chewie too. They sound like fun."

Carol looked behind her at the wall by the mattress to see a giant cassette player with a tape inside. "That's a little outdated." She commented under her breath.

The man looked to her confused but with a smile. "Is it?" He asked. "Thanks for the thousand credits, by the way. That'll come in handy."

Carol looked confused at his statement as she tried to think about what he was even talking about. Then she remembered the fake ass-grab from the other night to keep Bruce Banner from suspecting her of following him.

"You gonna buy an MP3 player with that money?" She asked as she put her hands to her head. She just wanted to go back to sleep.

"Captain Danvers, this is Peter Quill," Bruce said as he stood up and walked over to the red headed handsome guy that Carol couldn't help but look at. He turned around to look at her but she feigned to glance at something else as she felt her cheeks redden. "He and his group are called the…" Bruce tried to think of their group name. "Defenders of the Galaxy."

"Guardians! Guardians of the Galaxy." Peter corrected as he switched his ship to autopilot and stood up and walked closer to Carol who avoided eye contact. "Some people call me Star-Lord. They must have thought I was deserving of the title but what do I know? I just try to save as many people as I can. It's the least I can do." He said and held his hand out for her to shake.

She heard Rocket scoff in the distance at Peter's humble brag for the sake of impressing her. Carol looked up to him with a polite smile but could see by the look in his eyes that he was a player. She knew when she first met him that he was with that one purple lady on Knowhere. He was bad news and Carol knew to stay away from the likes of him.

Carol still had more questions that needed to be answered by the Avengers of the Galaxy and Bruce alike. She decided to lay down on the mattress while asking the questions only to save on her strength. On top of everything else, she was also a woman with a body that wanted to remind her once a month that she still had ovaries. It was the worst vacation ever.

"Where are we headed?" Carol asked no one in particular.

"We're going to speak with the Nova Prime, Irani Rael, about the attack on Xandar and see if Red Skull's attack on Knowhere would have any connection." Bruce explained. "Then we'll figure out our next plan after that."

"And we should trust these guys because…?" Carol asked as she looked to every one of the new recruits.

"Lady, we got experience with two things." Rocket spoke up indignantly. "First, we unofficially work for Nova Corps. They don't usually ask for our help… Actually, they never ask for our help but we like to think we make their job easier. Second, this ain't our first rodeo with an infinity stone. We're heroes on Xandar and the Nova Corps sent us to Knowhere for a reason."

"Yeah and what reason was that?" Carol interrogated as she didn't trust them yet.

"Because whoever attacked Xandar stole the orb. We all assumed it was the Collector." A female voice said as she entered the room. Carol looked at her green skin with the marks on her body and could easily see that whoever she was had modifications done. She was made to kill on sight. "We were closing in when your friend and the Red Skull were making their way out of Collector's warehouse with another infinity stone." She explained.

"Carol, this is Gamora. She's the leader of the Guardians." Bruce explained with respect towards Gamora. Already, Carol had more appreciation and esteem for Gamora then she had for the others only by the way she carried herself. However, Bruce's statement didn't receive the best response by both Rocket and Peter.

"Woah, woah, woah," Rocket stammered. "If anybody is in charge, it's most definitely me. I got us out of the most trouble with my quick thinkin.' Don't even try and deny that."

"Hey now," Peter chimed in. "If it wasn't for me, none of us would still be together. I'm the glue which means I'm the leader."

"I am Groot." The tree said with an indifferent voice. Gamora only rolled her eyes as she leaned walked towards the tech gear and started pressing some buttons ignoring the rest of the conversation until it became relevant.

"Who is driving my ship?" Carol asked moving onto more questions instead of dwelling on unimportant matters. She had a feeling that she and Gamora would get along just fine and it eased her mind to know that someone at least acted professional.

"That would be the rest of our crew." Peter said and sat on the side of the mattress with an intercom system in his hand. Carol propped her head up with her arm as Peter started making a call to her ship.

"Hello, Star-Lord." Carol heard Betsy say as Peter's face beamed.

"I told your ship to call me that." Peter chuckled with a playful smile.

"Betsy, it's me!" Carol said sitting straight up as she leaned over Peter to talk closer to the intercom.

"Welcome back, Ms. Danvers!" Betsy said cheerfully. "Don't worry, I assured that whoever took control of your ship had the right credentials before they stepped foot on your property."

"Thank you, Betsy." Carol said. "Can I speak with the people on board my ship?"

"I figured you would want a more personal approach." Betsy stated as Carol heard her calling attention to whoever occupied her ship.

"Hello, Captain. My name is Mantis and my companion is Drax." A female voice said. "We are enthusiastic to work alongside you throughout your journey around the galaxy."

"And these confections you have in your ship are delicious!" She heard a deep voice say as she could only assume it was the man named Drax. "What are they called?"

Carol only brought a few food items along that weren't pasty NASA snack items. She could only assume that he had gotten a hold of her favorite indulgence as her heart sank. "You're eating my Oreo's?" Carol asked while Peter nodded as if he recalled what she was talking about.

"Oreo's!" Drax echoed with clarity. "Do you have any more?"

"You ate all five packages?" Carol questioned with shock. She didn't know how long she would be in space and planned for at least five packages of a time length.

"Indeed!" Drax exclaimed through the intercom. "We must retrieve more!"

Carol climbed off the mattress around Peter as she made her way to the bottom of his ship. She was now updated on what they were doing and now only needed time to process it all. Carol wanted to go back home however she knew deep down that Stark wouldn't accept her arrival without Bruce. She needed to persuade Bruce to come back. That was the goal.

"So I also like to know who I'm working with." Peter said as he climbed down the stairs.

Carol turned her back away from him as she made a face of annoyance but looked back at him with a forced smile. "So do I. You have a file about yourself that I can look up?" She asked.

He gave her a device that was a translucent computer notebook as Carol pressed a finger on top of it. "Peter Quill." She said as she waited for it to search all details pertaining to him.

Instantly, it came up with bits of information that she scrolled through. Carol glanced up periodically and saw Peter looking at her with an amused face as she quickly stared back down at the screen.

"You've been in prison three times." Carol mentioned as she looked at his folder.

"Well… It came with the territory. Before saving the world, I was with a group of ravagers. You saw that, right?" Peter said as he tried to casually lean over her shoulder to look at the information as he put his chin on her shoulder.

Carol shimmied away from his closeness as she walked towards a table and leaned on it with arms folded. "It's my choice to trust you. But so help me, if you lead Bruce and I into something else other than the mission that he has planned out, I will come after you." She threatened.

Peter didn't look fazed by her warning and pressed his finger on the notepad. "Carol Danvers." He said as it searched for any information on her.

He made a face then winked at her. "Apparently I wasn't the only one in prison before." He pointed out as he continued to read her file.

Carol quickly stepped away from the table and spiked the notepad down as it shattered into pieces once it fell to the ground. Peter looked unsure of what had just happened as he stared at the remnants that he still held in his hands and then to her.

"I can pay for another one." Carol said on the apologetic side as she put her hands to her mouth in shock that she acted so rudely. "How much was it?"

"A thousand credits." Peter revealed with an eyebrow raised. "That was very…athletic of you to do."

"If you read further in my profile, it would have said that I was an avid member of the jazzercise scene." Carol said sarcastically under her breath.

Something hit their ship as Peter lost his balance as Carol caught him effortlessly before he fell flat on his face.

"What was that?" Carol asked as she glanced in every direction on alert while still holding Peter upright. She didn't necessarily have to anymore but Peter didn't make an effort to move from her grasp. "Does that usually happen?"

Peter stood up tall and gazed at his surroundings as well. "What was that?" He reiterated Carol's question as he shouted up to the captain's deck for them to answer back.

"We ain't sure yet but whatever it was wasn't pretty." Rocket yelled down to them. "Everything seems kosher right now, Quill."

Bruce walked down the stairs and looked to Carol. "It came from outside. An explosion." He stated and looked to Peter expectedly.

Peter was starting to realize that his presence wasn't welcome and looked to Carol. "I guess that's my queue…to leave this part of _my_ ship." He remarked as he backed away while still facing her. "If you need anything or get scared…"

"Please don't finish that sentence." Carol protested with an inward groan.

"Noted. But still here for you." He said and walked to another part of his ship.

When he left, Bruce looked up to her with an amused look. "What was that about the thousand credits that he mentioned?" He asked.

"Is that what you came down here to ask?" Carol quizzed back.

"If you're mad at me for interrupting something…" Bruce started to say but Carol cut him off with only a look as her nostrils flared out with her blue eyes trying to pierce his soul.

"Did you come down for something important?" Carol asked through gritted teeth.

"I want to know more about you." Bruce said as he leaned against the table in the middle of the room. "I got to meet these guys that are with us while you slept. They are affiliated with the Nova Corps. Even with an unofficial status, they saved Xandar from an infinity stone before. I trust them."

"But you don't trust me?" Carol questioned and put a hand over her heart. "What's this feeling inside? You're making me feel raw emotion by your hurtful words."

"Be thorough." Bruce said and sat on a chair close to the large table.

"I was born and raised in Boston…" Carol started but saw Bruce roll his eyes as she took him literally and started from the beginning. "Stark practically cornered me when I was in Las Vegas. Thought I was keeping a low enough profile."

"What were you doing in Las Vegas and why were you trying to hide?" He asked.

Carol shook her head as she didn't want to talk about it. "I was feeling lucky, I guess." She stammered out as she tried to think of another answer for his latter question. Tony didn't really even ask why she tried to steal from a casino. She gave him some details but it more into detail than she wanted to talk about. "And since everything happened in Sokovia, protocol has changed for the likes of us."

"What do you mean?" Bruce questioned putting his elbows on the table while looking cautiously curious.

"A lot of people started pointing fingers at the Avengers after Ultron." Carol revealed. "Now every hero, whether they be a part of the Avengers or not, has to register with the government to be…monitored. Or you retire from helping people at all."

Carol continued, "I didn't sign or register with the Sokovia Accords. I chose not to because people needed my help in ways that I know the government can't serve without even more forms and going to court for every little detail. So I just decided to remain obscure and watch from behind the corner as the Avengers tore themselves a part."

"What do you mean by that?" Bruce asked.

"Well, that's another story that maybe Tony can tell you when you go back to Earth." Carol sassed. "Anyways, given my background in military, S.H.I.E.L.D., and in space, Stark thought I was the best person to come look for you."

"Why does he want me to come back so badly?" Bruce inquired.

Carol looked at him with worry and then glanced down at the table. "Can I ask you a question first?" She asked.

"Sure." He said begrudgingly as he wanted to be the one that asked questions in their conversation.

"Why are you looking for these infinity stones now? And it seems like you aren't the only one searching for them either." Carol speculated and gazed back at him.

"Something was brought to my attention when I was on Asgard not that long ago." Bruce responded but still kept Carol in the dark with details. "I can't even begin to tell you what would happen if we lose."

"Stark wanted you home because whatever is going on with this Easter hunt that everyone is on? It's not going unnoticed with the people down on Earth. Strange anomalies have popped up. Tony could be paranoid but he thinks something is coming." Carol informed.

"Not unless we stop them from coming to Earth first." Bruce replied confidently.

Carol shook her head and scoffed at herself. "Because we've done such a great job protecting the one gem we had." She said and looked to Bruce as he glanced back at her uneasily.

"What's wrong?" Carol asked.

"Nothing." Bruce said quickly with a shake of his head. "I am choosing to trust you to have my back on this mission, Captain."

"Just as I am trusting you to rethink never going back to Earth." Carol said as he looked annoyed by her cornering of him. "At least think about it."

"I guess that sounds fair." Bruce responded.

Carol was about to say something when she heard the raccoon protest in the captain's deck upstairs. "Nope! That ain't good!" He said as they felt the ship veer sharply to the left. Bruce and Carol tried to keep their balance until the ship leveled out again while Peter ran past them and up the stairs.

"We being attacked?" Peter asked while basically sprinting up the stairs until he made it to his chair to steer the ship as Rocket climbed out of it. Once Carol made it to the deck, she made her way to the other chair that was right of Peter and started fidgeting with some buttons to help make their ship more agile. She quickly glanced out the window to see space ship speeders in front of them that seemed to be waiting. It didn't feel right. Carol knew they could be the ones that were the threat that Xandar warned the entire galaxy about. Their ships had to be in the thousands.

"These people just came up out of nowhere!" Rocket exclaimed. "You want to confront these guys now?"

"Don't!" Gamora said as she came up behind Carol's chair. "You don't want to fight these people!"

"Any reason why we can't?" Peter protested.

"That is Thanos. He will kill us all if we get too close to his legion." Gamora snarled. "We need to turn around."

Carol helped by pushing more buttons that could make them go in hyper speed in the other direction as an uneasy feeling settled into her stomach. She turned around to see Bruce standing behind Peter's chair as he gazed at the ships knowingly. She didn't know who Thanos was. But she had a feeling that he knew by experience.

"Bruce…" Carol called suspiciously as the doctor started to look distant and avoid them. "Bruce, why is Thanos coming after us?" She asked.

"I may have something that he's looking for." Bruce stated as Carol continued to look at him until he revealed more information.

"Like...?" She pressed.

He took a deep breath and reached into his pocket but then changed his mind. Bruce did that three more times and then finally produced a small burlap sack that was tied at the end with a string. It shined green as Carol could already guess what it was.

"You had it with you this whole time?" Carol asked.

"Not another one of these." Rocket grunted. "I'm calling Drax and Mantis. They'll want to know that we are all as good as dead."


End file.
